Zeon Empire (Galactic Century)
The Zeon Empire, otherwise simply referred to as the Empire, is the main antagonist faction of Mobile Suit Gundam Alpha. Zeon is a star nation that consists of the distant world of Zeon and its territories. Alongside, the empire if both the founding and most prominent member of the Outer Powers, the military alliance of nations along the Outer Rim. 'History' 'Formation' 'First Galactic War' Despite their distaste for the "lowborn" (Zeon slang for unaugmented humans), the Zeon Empire had remained at relative (if ambivalent) peace with its neighbors for several centuries; this is due to the House of Daikun and its line of Emperors promoting peaceful coexistence with those around them. Recently however, that has all changed with the assassination of the last Emperor of the Daikun Dynasty, Zorin, and the ascension of Emperor Gihren. Adding fuel to the fire was the fact that the man who allegedly carried out the crime was a non-augmented offworlder. Not long after this change in leadership, Zeon and the other Outer Powers would invade inner space and drive for complete conquest of the galaxy. Thus begins the First Galactic War. 'Government and Politics' 'Structure' By design, the Zeon Empire is a constitutional monarchy that emphasizes imperialism and genetic supremacy. Whereas the Federation is largely similar to the AD era United States of America, Zeon is mostly compared (by Federals at least) to the ancient German Empire in its various forms. It is primarily ruled by an Emperor, who retains unilateral power and authority. Day to day administration, however, is handled by a Chancellery and an Imperial Council, the latter consisting of representatives from all Imperial worlds. 'Imperial Monarchy' 'Imperial Council' 'Economics' 'Society and Culture' 'Overview' In terms of society, Zeon, again due to their continued practice of eugenics, is primarily based around the philosophies of Nietzcheism and Dawkinism, in which conflict and competition are emphasized; from the day they are born Zeon must fight for their place in Imperial society, as well as to reproduce and continue their lineage. Natural selection is prevalent here, with some succeeding and others being less fortunate. Even so, in other areas Zeon is not far removed from traditional human society, with intellectualism being as valued as physical capability, and the desire for joy and happiness being commonplace. 'Military' 'Imperial Space Force' Imperial Ground Force Imperial Assault Force 'Imperial Guard' 'Imperial Security Directorate "Stazi"' Outside the regular military forces, Zeon's primary enforcement and intelligence arm is the Imperial Security Directorate, otherwise known as the Stazi (after the ancient Zeon term for "security"). Originally formed to hunt down and apprehend anti-Zeon dissenters, the Stazi has since grown past its original purpose and now exists as Zeon's secret police. It was the Stazi that, after Gihren Zabi's seizure of power, hunted down and eliminated members of the House of Daikun, as well as any other threat the newly crowned Emperor had foreseen, which included anyone from members of the Imperial Council to high ranking Imperial Militar commanders to regular citizenry. To this day, the Stazi keeps a tight watch over Zeon should another threat to their Emperor arise, while both Zeon and outsiders alike view the organization with certain dread. 'Notes' 'Trivia' *Obviously, the Zeon Empire is the Alpha rendition of the Universal Century's Principality of Zeon. Alongside, it holds similarities to PLANT from Mobile Suit Gundam SEED, such as its social emphasis on science and technology, genetic engineering being standard practice and its citizens being biologically advanced humans that are antagonized by outside nations. *In terms of race, Zeon are highly based upon the Augments of Star Trek and Nietzcheans of Andromeda. All three are a breed of genetically engineered humans that are physically and mentally superior in nearly all aspects, and are all known for possessing savage and elitist attitudes toward those they believe inferior. Even so, all three are known to exhibit traditional human characteristics, such as desiring love, knowledge and happiness.